Make a brand guide from a free template
In this tutorial, we'll use one of the free templates in Guidelines to create a multi-page brand guide, then add content and publish it live.
Selecting a Template
After creating your site and adding brand assets such as logos and colors, you'll be prompted to choose a template.
Guidelines offers:
- One-page guide – compact, with all elements (logos, colors, typography, fonts) on a single page.
- Seven-page guide – expanded, with dedicated sections for each element and more room for content.
For this example, we'll use the seven-page template. Once selected, Guidelines generates the site automatically.
Exploring the Editor
Inside the editor, the left-hand panel shows the pages created from the template—such as Logo, Colors, Typography, and Photography.
The right-hand editor displays the content of each page. The homepage serves as a cover and includes a table of contents, which updates automatically as you publish additional pages.
Adding Sections and Blocks
Guidelines organizes content into:
- Sections – horizontal rows across the page.
- Blocks – individual pieces of content within a section.
Click the button to add a new section. You can choose from built-in templates for logos, branding, colors, and typography, or add a blank section to start from scratch.
Within a section, you can add blocks such as:
- Text
- Images
- Videos
- Logos
- Color palettes
- Typography specimens
- Clear space diagrams (for logo spacing)
Editing a Page Example
To demonstrate, we'll add a logo to the homepage:
- Delete the existing block above to make space.
- Insert a new logo block.
- Resize the heading to adjust the layout.
- Select a different logo (such as an icon) from the toolbar.
- Align the block to the left for a cleaner layout.
Because the block references your live brand assets, you'll always have access to every logo you've uploaded.
Publishing Your Guide
Once satisfied with your edits, click to take the site live.
Publishing options include:
- Public – anyone with the link can view.
- Password-protected – requires a password to access.
- Restricted – available only to people you grant access, who must sign in with a free Guidelines account.
After publishing, the page appears in the left-hand panel. You can continue editing, adding, or rearranging sections at any time.
Next Steps
Your template is now live and editable. In the next tutorial, we'll look more closely at adding and managing logos on the Logos page.